OBJECTIVE Aripiprazole at clinically effective doses occupies some 90% of striatal dopamine 2 and 3 (D(2)/D(3)) receptors. In order to further characterize its extrastriatal and time-dependent binding characteristics, the authors conducted positron emission tomography (PET) studies with the D(2)/D(3) antagonist [(18)F]fallypride at varying time points after the last aripiprazole administration ...

We have recently examined the efficacy of low-dose aripiprazole augmentation for major depressive disorder (MDD), with modest nonsignificant benefit found. In a secondary investigation, we examined whether aripiprazole resulted in improvement in four subscales (depression, anxiety, somatic symptoms, and hostility) of the Kellner Symptom Questionnaire (KSQ). We reanalyzed data from the main outc...

Psychotropic medications have been known to cause cardiac conduction disturbances. Not much is known about the cardiovascular side effects of newer atypical antipsychotics such as aripiprazole. A case of a 13-year-old girl with schizophrenia is presented. An analysis of the presented patient's clinical history indicates the need for a detailed analysis of the severe arrhythmia induced by aripip...

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to evaluate short-term efficacy and safety of aripiprazole in the treatment of irritability in children and adolescents with autistic disorder who were manifesting behaviors such as tantrums, aggression, self-injurious behavior, or a combination of these. METHODS This 8-week, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study was condu...

To date, only few studies have examined the impact of medication on social cognition and none have examined the effects of aripiprazole in this respect. The goal of this 8-week, randomized, multicenter, open-label study was to examine the effects of aripiprazole and risperidone on social cognition and neurocognition in individuals with schizophrenia. Eighty schizophrenia patients (DSM-IV-TR) ag...

Aripiprazole is a second-generation antipsychotic that is increasingly being prescribed to children and adolescents. Despite this trend, little preclinical research has been done on the neural and behavioral actions of aripiprazole during early development. In the present study, young male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were pretreated with vehicle, haloperidol (1 mg/kg), or aripiprazole (10 mg...

Aripiprazole, a novel atypical antipsychotic that acts as a partial agonist at the dopamine D(2) receptors, has been reported to be effective in the treatment of chronic schizophrenia. However, the risks and benefits of using aripiprazole in the acute hospital setting to treat severe psychotic disorders are unclear. This naturalistic study assessed the effectiveness of aripiprazole monotherapy ...

The present study investigated how repeated administration of aripiprazole (a novel antipsychotic drug) alters its behavioral effects in two behavioral tests of antipsychotic activity and whether this alteration is correlated with an increase in dopamine D2 receptor function. Male adult Sprague-Dawley rats were first repeatedly tested with aripiprazole (3, 10 and 30 mg/kg, subcutaneously (sc)) ...

Sexual side effects are common with antipsychotic use. Spontaneous ejaculations without sexual arousal have been previously described with several typical and atypical antipsychotics. We report the case of a man who had spontaneous ejaculations after stopping risperidone and starting 30 mg/day aripiprazole. Spontaneous ejaculations ceased 3 days after decreasing the aripiprazole dose to 15 mg/d...

Blood dyscrasias are the widely known side effect of the second-generation antipsychotic medications. Aripiprazole rarely causes hematological side effects and it is considered relatively safe. We present the case report of a seven-year-old male who developed acute neutropenia a week after starting aripiprazole. His absolute neutrophil count (ANC) arose spontaneously once the medication was sto...